Cinema of Kuwait

Cinema of Kuwait
No. of screens	61 (2010)[1]
• Per capita	2.3 per 100,000 (2010)[1]
Number of admissions (2008)[2]
Total	2,200,000
Gross box office (2008)[2]
Total	$19.8 million

Cinema in Kuwait was introduced in the mid-20th century. The dominance of American cinema posed a problem in the formation of Arab cinema in general and of Kuwaiti cinema in particular.^[3] French film critic Guy Hennebelle argued that Arab intellectuals became convinced that only by imitating the American culture could they overcome national cultural decline and backwardness. This caused an absence of local Kuwaiti works of cinematic art. However, Kuwaitis preserved their national identity by producing local content in television.^[4] They planned a balance between preserving their national identity while also satisfying other preferences. The dependence of Kuwaiti cinema was rooted in the domination of American and other foreign-produced films.

In 1971, Khalid Alsidiqq directed the first Kuwaiti feature film that talked about local cultural heritage and history. The Kuwaiti cinema industry now employs a strong usage of local culture and tradition.^[5] In 1972, Kuwait produced their first feature film Bas ya Bahr (The Cruel Sea) which talks about common life in the pre-oil discovery period when fishing was a predominant occupation.^[6] This initiated the local film industry to be one of the most famous and acknowledged feature film of the era. Later in 1976, Kuwait produced its second feature film The Wedding of Zain.

There are female actresses who had a prominent role in shaping local cinema such as Souad Abdullah and Hayat Al Fahad, long considered an iconic Kuwaiti actress who had a prominent role in shaping local cinema to the present day.

In 1954, the Kuwait National Cinema Company was established. Being the first leading entertainment company in Kuwait and in the Gulf, in 2005 it released its Cinematic brand and theatre in the country, Cinescape. Kuwait was the first country in the Middle East and the second worldwide after Australia to ease M-NET payment, improving audience experiences in the cinema.

Falafel Cart, released in 2019 by director Abdullah Al-Wazzan was Kuwait's first film to be officially selected at the prestigious Hiroshima International Animation Festival in Japan.^[7] In 2021 the film won best animated short film at the Burbank International Film Festival in California.^[8] In 2019, the film was submitted for the 92nd Academy Awards in the short animated film category, making it Kuwait's first short film to ever be submitted to the Academy Awards.^[9]